This invention relates to weight training exercise machines, and more particularly a weight training exercise machine wherein the exerciser performs an exercise maneuver from a standing position.
Applicant has invented and developed a number of weight training exercise machines designed to more naturally accommodate the musculoskeletal structure of the human body with respect to the performance of particular muscular movement. These inventions are shown and described in the following U.S. patent applications: patent application Ser. No. 08/594,526 entitled xe2x80x9cBody Extension Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d filed Jan. 31, 1996, currently pending; U.S. Pat. No. 5,044,631 entitled xe2x80x9cDecline Press Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Sep. 3, 1991; U.S. Pat. No. 5,044,632 entitled xe2x80x9cDumbbell Press Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Sep. 3, 1991; U.S. Pat. No. 5,050,873 entitled xe2x80x9cPulldown Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Sep. 24, 1991; U.S. Pat. No. 5,066,003 entitled xe2x80x9cLeg Curl Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Nov. 19, 1991; U.S. Pat. No. 5,066,004 entitled xe2x80x9cLeg Extension Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Nov. 19, 1991; U.S. Pat. No. 5,106,080 entitled xe2x80x9cLeg Press Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Oct. 21, 1995; U.S. Pat. No. 5,125,881 entitled xe2x80x9cRear Deltoid Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Jun. 30, 1992; U.S. Pat. No. 5,135,449 entitled xe2x80x9cRowing Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Aug. 4, 1992; U.S. Pat. No. 5,135,456 entitled xe2x80x9cLow Row Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Aug. 4, 1992; U.S. Pat. No. 5,171,198 entitled xe2x80x9cLateral Raise Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Dec. 15, 1992; U.S. Pat. No. 5,180,354 entitled xe2x80x9cRotary Cuff Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Jan. 19, 1993; U.S. Pat. No. 5,181,896 entitled xe2x80x9cIncline Press Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Jan. 26, 1993; U.S. Pat. No. 5,273,504 entitled xe2x80x9cBehind the Neck Pulldown Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Dec. 28, 1993; U.S. Pat. No. 5,273,505 entitled xe2x80x9cHigh Row Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Dec. 28, 1993; U.S. Pat. No. 5,554,084 entitled xe2x80x9cAbdominal/Hip Flex Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Sep. 10, 1996; U.S. Pat. No. 5,554,089 entitled xe2x80x9cMilitary Press Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Sep. 10, 1996; U.S. Pat. No. 5,554,090 entitled xe2x80x9cCalf Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Sep. 10, 1996; and U.S. Pat. No. RE35,470 (reissuance of U.S. Pat. No. 5,181,896) entitled xe2x80x9cIncline Press Exercise Machinexe2x80x9d issued Mar. 4, 1997.
Generally, the exercise machines shown and described in these patents include one or more rotatable levers which are engaged by an exerciser, usually by the hand or leg, to move the lever through an exercise plane which is oriented at a specific angle or position with respect to the torso of the body. The movement path of the lever is designed to minimize stress and discomfort on the musculoskeletal joints, while maximizing the muscular benefit achieved via performance of the exercise motion.
One of the above-identified U.S. patent applications, specifically U.S. Pat. No. RE35,470 (reissuance of U.S. Pat. No. 5,181,896) entitled xe2x80x9cIncline Press Exercise Machine,xe2x80x9d relates to an exercise machine which enables an exerciser to perform a chest press exercise motion from a standing position or a seated position. When the exercise machine covered by this patent does not include the seat, and the exercise is performed from a standing position, the exerciser achieves additional muscular benefit in the stomach and upper leg muscles due to the need to stand and brace the weight of the body against the pushing motion. The standing version of the exercise machine covered by this patent has become particularly popular with football players who play on the offensive line, because the standing press motion mimics the motion used during pass blocking. While the same upper body muscles could be worked via performance of the same motion from a seated position, a more natural feel is achieved and abdominal and rear end muscles are more naturally worked via performance of this exercise from a standing position.
It is an object of this invention to further expand upon the principle of performing a prescribed exercise motion from a standing position.
Traditionally, a number of health clubs have used wall mounted weighted pulleys to enable an exerciser to move a weight stack upwardly by moving a handle from the wall, with the exerciser being in a standing position during the movement. Depending upon the orientation of the exerciser with respect to the wall, the handle can either be pulled away from the wall toward the body, or pushed away from the body and the wall. In the former case, the exerciser would typically be standing in a position where he or she is facing the wall, while in the latter example, the exerciser would typically be standing in a position wherein he or she is facing outwardly from the wall. With either motion, the exerciser achieves some muscular benefit in the abdominal and rear end muscles because the exercise pulling or pushing motion is performed from a standing position. Nevertheless, although this device enables an exerciser to perform either a pushing or a pulling motion, it is not capable of being used for the performance of simultaneous pushing and pulling with opposite hands.
Thus, the versatility of this device relates primarily to the ability of the exerciser to move the handle to any desired position and free space. But that versatility can also cause some problems because inexperienced exercisers or perhaps those rehabilitating an injury may have difficulty in confining and controlling the exercise movement within a desired path, because the handle will always be subject to a force section directly straight toward the pulley at the top of the weight stack.
It is another object of this invention to improve upon the degree of control an exerciser has over the motion path of an exercise device used in a pushing or pulling motion, particularly when performed in a standing mode.
For various athletes involved in weight training via the use of exercise machines or devices of various types, it is common for the exerciser to use the machine or device to exercise a muscle group against a weight resistance via movement of an arm or leg in a first prescribed direction, and then to subsequently use reverse or opposite movement, via xe2x80x9cnegative resistance,xe2x80x9d to work the same muscle group in an opposite direction. Typically, the performance of xe2x80x9cnegativesxe2x80x9d is done with the assistance of one or more other exercisers, or xe2x80x9cspottersxe2x80x9d who may actually apply manual resistance to the machine or device to prevent its movement back to its normal at rest position.
Although the muscular benefits achieved via the performance of xe2x80x9cnegativesxe2x80x9d can play an important role in the muscular development of an athlete, the manual application of resistance to an exercise machine or device by one or more spotters can create a dangerous situation, or it can increase wear and tear on the exercise machine or device. Even if negative resistance is applied by an experienced spotter, maximum muscular benefit may not be achieved due to inconsistency in the application of the negative resistance. In other words, most exercise machines or devices are simply not adapted for performance of xe2x80x9cnegatives.xe2x80x9d
Although some specific rehabilitation equipment improves upon the degree of control of the application of xe2x80x9cnegative resistance,xe2x80x9d such machines are usually quite bulky and fairly expensive due to this inclusion of various electronic controls such as timers, resistance measuring devices, etc. Thus, while such machines are helpful for an athlete performing a specific exercise for a specific muscle group during rehabilitation, such devices are not versatile enough or simply too expensive to be purchased for everyday use in a weight training or exercise facility.
It is still another objective of the invention to improve safety concerns related to the performance of a reverse exercise movement, and to do so in a manner which is sufficiently cost effective to enable everyday use and affordability for conventional exercise facilities or gyms.
The present invention achieves the above-stated objectives via a push/pull exercise machine which permits simultaneous positive/reverse exercise motion for opposite sides of the body, from a standing position, so that an exerciser may exercise the same muscle groups on opposite sides of the body via positive and reverse motions along prescribed exercise motion paths.
Because the push/pull exercise machine of this invention is particularly suitable for use by an exerciser in the standing position, or a standing mode, in addition to upper body exercise the exerciser also achieves muscular benefit for the abdominal muscles and muscles of the rear end. Additionally, by performing the pushing and the pulling exercise motions from a standing position, the exerciser is able to improve his or her balance.
Moreover, simultaneous performance of the pushing and the pulling motions creates a twisting effect on the torso of the exerciser, particularly when in the standing mode, thereby to further achieve muscular benefit for the abdominal and mid-section muscles of the exerciser. Preferably, the planes of motion prescribed by the exercise machine of this invention converge with respect to the forward facing direction of the exerciser, so that both the pushing and the pulling motions are performed along paths which more naturally accommodate the musculoskeletal structure of the human body.
Because of the particular physical arrangement of the exercise machine of this invention, which includes a frame made of two frame sections located on opposite sides of a midplane, with one framed section located slightly rearward of the other section, the one framed section is particularly suitable for performing a pushing motion while the other framed section is particularly suitable for performing a pulling motion. In effect, the pushing motion is the reverse motion or opposite of the pulling motion, and vice versa. When the pulling motion and pushing motion are performed simultaneously, the exerciser achieves the dual benefits of positive and opposite movement of the muscles of the muscle groups located on opposite sides of the body.
Because each separate section of the machine is specifically adapted for performing either a pushing or a pulling motion, a separate mirror image xe2x80x9cpull/pushxe2x80x9d machine is used to perform pulling and pushing with the opposite hands. Thus, when used together, the two mirror-image machines provide positive/opposite exercise motion for the muscle groups on both sides of the exerciser, for both the pulling and the pushing motions. In other words, the two machines together accommodate both positive and reverse, or opposite, motion along the same relative prescribed motion paths. Therefore, by using the two machines together, this invention minimizes the need for the use of spotters to manually apply physical resistance to an exercise machine in order for an exerciser to perform xe2x80x9cnegativesxe2x80x9d in order to achieve xe2x80x9creversexe2x80x9d exercise. Moreover, the exercise machine of this invention enables opposite or reverse motion to be performed in a relatively cost effective manner, because the machine itself is designed to be relatively simple from a structural standpoint, so that it is as easy to understand and use as other exercise machines typically used in a weight training facility. Because the paths of motion are prescribed by the exercise machine, these opposite exercise motions may be performed in a manner which does not increase wear and tear on the exercise machine or introduce a risk factor typically associated with manual application of xe2x80x9cnegativexe2x80x9d resistance to a pivotal lever.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, a standing push/pull exercise machine includes a frame with first and second frame sections located on opposite sides of a midplane, with the frame defining an exercise position between the first and second frame sections for an exerciser facing a forward direction along the midplane. The first frame section is located rearwardly of the second framed section, relative to the midplane and the forward facing direction of the exerciser. A first lever pivotally connects to the first frame section, and the first lever includes a first handle and a first weight holder for holding a first selectable weight resistance. Upon grasping the first handle, an exerciser located in the exercise position, preferably in a standing mode, moves the handle in a forward direction against the first selected weight resistance, and along an exercise motion path which converges toward the midplane with respect to the forward facing direction. Thus, when the exerciser has fully extended his or her arm so that the handle is in a forwardmost position, the handle is closer to the midplane than when the handle is in its rearwardmost position, in the at rest position. The movement path of the first handle corresponds to a vertical plane which converges toward the midplane with respect to the forward facing direction of the exercise machine.
Opposite the first lever, on the second side of the frame, the exercise machine includes a second lever pivotally connected to the second frame section. Similar to the first lever, the second lever includes a second weight holder for holding a second selected weight resistance and a second handle adapted to be grasped by an opposite hand of the exerciser located in the exercise position defined by the frame. However, for the second lever, the handle resides in a forwardmost position when at rest, and it is grasped by the exerciser and pulled rearwardly along an exercise movement path so that in a rearward most position it is further away from the midplane. The second movement path for the second lever also converges with respect to the forward facing direction of the exerciser situated in the exercise position.
The second exercise path is oriented similar to the first exercise path, for working the same group of muscles on the opposite side of the exerciser""s body, but with the exercise of the first lever being a pushing motion and the exercise of the second lever on the opposite side of the body being the opposite of the pushing motion, i.e., a pulling motion. In considering this matter from the opposite perspective, the second lever is used for the performance of a pulling motion, while the first lever is used for the opposite of the pulling motion, i.e., a pushing motion. Thus, reference to the term xe2x80x9cpush and pullxe2x80x9d as either positive or opposite (or reverse) exercise motion depends upon the point of reference of the exerciser.
With another identical exercise machine, but which is a mirror image of the exercise machine shown and described, the exerciser is able to perform pull and push exercise motion, respectively, rather than the push and pull exercise motions. Thus, by using the two mirror image machines together, the exerciser is able to achieve optimal exercise benefit for this particular muscle group via the performance of both positive and reverse exercise motions, regardless of which particular motion is initially referred to as the positive motion. Moreover, because the first and second levers pivot independently of each other, the exerciser may also perform one exercise motion at a time. By performing simultaneous pushing and pulling exercise via this exercise machine, the exerciser creates a twisting exercise motion for the torso. This twisting effect represents a new and further muscular advantage over prior exercise machines, even prior exercise machines adapted for the performance of an exercise motion from a standing position.